US hammers out ‘bottom lines’ for Iran nuclear deal

The Obama administration has laid out a rigorous outline for Tehran to follow before an agreement can be reached regarding Iran’s nuclear program, the details of which will be discussed in talks next week.

The White House is showing optimism after “sticking to its
guns” and remaining patient through an extended negotiation
process with Tehran “because we have held firm to certain
bottom lines,” a senior US administration official said.

“We will only accept an agreement that cuts off the different
pathways to the fissile material that Iran needs for a nuclear
weapon,” the official told AFP.

Washington’s demands that Iran “reduces significantly”
its present number of operating centrifuges and agree to
“unprecedented” inspections of both nuclear and
production facilities, including uranium mines and other similar
sites.

The US also wants Tehran to be prevented from developing
weapons-grade plutonium at its Arak reactor as well as agree not
to use its Fordo nuclear plant to enrich uranium. That would
leave only Iran’s Natanz plant capable of enriching uranium,
which at high grades can be used in nuclear weapons.

“We are insisting…that sanctions can snap back into place if
Iran were to violate the agreement,” the US official said.

Tehran says it is pursuing a nuclear energy program for its
civilians, rejecting Western allegations of a secret bomb agenda.

At a speech to mark the 36th anniversary of the Islamic
revolution, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani expressed confidence
that an agreement would be concluded.

"In recent months we have shown the flexibility necessary to
resolve this political issue," he said. "We hope that
the other negotiating party can show more than before. If so...
in a short time the disputes can be resolved."

Earlier this month, the supreme leader of the Islamic Revolution,
Ayatollah Khamenei, favored an agreement, but he warned that Iran
would reject any accords if they contradict national interests.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif mentioned in
January a fatwa issued by Supreme Leader of the Islamic
Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei that placed a religious
ban on the possession and use of nuclear weapons, saying, "We
believe that all nuclear weapons should be dismantled," the
FARS news agency reported

US Secretary of State John Kerry is heading for Switzerland,
where he will meet with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad
Zarif as part of the P5+1 negotiating group.

Several factors have increased tensions over the negotiation
process, including a controversial visit to Washington next week
by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will address a
joint session of Congress.

Netanyahu’s invitation to speak before Congress, extended to the
Israeli leader by Republican House Speaker John Boehner without
the previous knowledge of the White House, which is standard
protocol in such cases, has driven US-Israeli relations to their
lowest levels in many years.

Meanwhile, negotiators are under pressure to reach an agreement
with Iran before a March 31 deadline, with the final technical
details to be finished by June 30.